• Thursday, March 28, 2024
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BusinessDay

Loss of military assets to terrorists pulls clock back on gains

On his way back from a successful raid against kidnappers on 18 July 2021, Flight Lt Abayomi Dairo of the Nigerian Air Force had a near brush with death.

The military jet Dairo flew was around the borders of northern Zamfara and Kaduna states, when suspected armed gangs opened fire. Dairo later said he only survived by ejecting and using “survival instincts” to avoid capture and find shelter, before rejoining his comrades.

Dairo is one of the very few military personnel who have faced increasing attacks from suspected terrorists and survived. The rest have not been very fortunate. Should this trend continue, we believe it puts a question mark on the fight against terrorists and the capability of the current administration to effectively address the insecurity in the country. It also rewinds the clock on the gains the military has made so far in the fight against insurgency and terrorism.

Read Also: Nigerian military says scores of terrorists and bandits killed in aggressive operations

This year alone, about three military airplanes have been involved in “crashes” that led to the death of officials.

The inability of the military in protecting its assets and human resources, leaves nothing but worry for Nigerians who are relying on the military to keep them safe

It was in May when Lt General Ibrahim Attahiru and 10 other officers were killed in a plane crash. The military is yet to release a report on what caused the crash.

Back in April, another Alpha Jet crashed in Borno state – one of the areas where Boko Haram militants are most active. Reports say that it was shot down by the terrorists have been denied by the military.

Before that in February, a military aircraft in Abuja that was bound for Niger state to search for kidnapped schoolchildren there crashed – killing all seven people on board.

Apart from military crashes, terrorists have at various times overrun military camps in the northern region of Nigeria.

In May, the terrorists carried out attacks on two army bases, overrunning one camp and killing at least eight people.

An attack on another base in April led to the death of about seven soldiers. The affected military base, the headquarters of 156 Task Force Battalion in Mainok, was virtually destroyed as the Boko Haram terrorists carted away arms and ammunition, burning everything in sight.

The most brazen of the attacks had come earlier in January when an armed group overran a town and captured a military base in Borno state in an attack claimed by the ISIL (ISIS) group, security sources said.

While we acknowledge the tireless efforts of our military personnel in keeping the country safe, the inability of the military in protecting its assets and human resources, leaves nothing but worry for Nigerians who are relying on the military to keep them safe. It also does not bode well with regards to boosting the morale of our soldiers.

Importantly, these attacks whittle down whatever is left of investors’ confidence in the future prospects of the country’s economy. Investments are increasingly being diverted from the areas with high-security alerts. It then exacerbates a situation in which resources and investments are concentrated in a few states, leaving the greater part of the country backward and thereby widening the income equality gaps in the country. Without security, there will be no meaningful prosperity and that creates incentives for terrorist recruits.

What is needed is greater transparency and communication by the government on the progress made so far in the war against terrorism and the various programs created to end the conflict. The poor communication from the government has fuelled rumours and fears that the fight is not heading in the right direction.

Also, we agree with a Brookings report that the government’s wariness with regards to transparency undermines the potential for those who have gone through deradicalization programs – that is, Operation Safe Corridor, the rehabilitation program for low-risk women and children, or planned deradicalization programs in prisons – to be reinserted and reintegrated back into their communities.

Nigeria’s future is at a precipice of collapse from insecurity. The military must rise to the occasion and ensure the security of lives and properties. In doing this, it needs to start by protecting itself.